Chapter 1 – Shattered Truth
The corridor outside the examination room smelled faintly of disinfectant and metal—a cold, sterile scent that made my stomach churn even more than the morning sickness ever had. At nine months pregnant, I thought nothing could shock me anymore. But as I stood frozen, gripping the prenatal check-up report so hard the paper nearly tore, I realized I had been wrong.
Inside the room, illuminated by harsh white hospital lights, stood my mate—Carson.
But he wasn’t standing next to me.
He wasn’t holding my hand.
He wasn’t looking at me with pride, excitement, or even mild concern.
He stood beside her.
Alice Pruitt.
His first love.
The woman who had vanished from his life for years, only to return three months ago and tear mine apart without even trying.
She lay on the examination bed, her belly swollen, round, unmistakable. And Carson… Carson was stroking it with a tenderness I had never—not once—seen him show me. His thumb moved in slow, affectionate circles, as if he were caressing something precious, sacred.
Something that belonged to him.
Something that wasn’t me.
“Carson, you shouldn’t be here with me…” Alice whispered, her voice trembling in that soft, helpless way she used to trap men like moths in a flame. “If Brianna finds out, she’ll be furious. She’s so close to giving birth. Aren’t you worried?”
She said “furious” like I was some jealous, unhinged harpy. But what cut deepest was the triumphant glint in her eyes—just a flicker, quickly hidden, but enough to slice through me like a blade.
Carson pressed a kiss—an actual kiss—to her belly.
A sound escaped my throat, something between a gasp and a sob, but he didn’t hear it. He didn’t hear me at all.